2004 R1150RT - Dead Electrical System But New Battery!

[bobbymacd]

I went to start the bike today for a short spin prior to my pre-winter oil change and here is what happened...

1. Turned the key to the "on" position and the dash lights and head lights lit up as usual (including the blue hi-beam indicator)
2. Pushed the ignition button twice and nothing happened
3. Realized that the ignition switch above the right hand grip was flipped to the left which prevented the starter from activating
4. Flipped the ignition switch to the center / upright position...at that point the RID display lit up and the dash and headlights remained lit
5. Pressed the ignition button again and heard a "CLUNK!" mechanical sound and then everything went dark

Other circumstances:
A. Battery is 6 weeks old; was solid green on Battery Tender Jr before start attempt; was put back on Tender after failure and is now solid green again
B. Following the failure, turning the key to the start position illuminates NOTHING -- no dash lights, no headlights
C. I have LED aux/running lights installed...power to these lights is spliced from one of the aux power ports, controlled with a 5 amp fuse and a switch Velcroed under the dash. They draw 0.66 Amps per light @ 14.5v DC (see http://www.bikevis.com/motorcycle-cree-led-running-lights.html)
D. As I said, turning the key to start illuminates nothing, BUT when I switch on the aux lights I get a very quick on/off flashing, almost a strobe light pattern....with four of the "ons" being very dim and the fifth "on" being normal LED brightness. The pattern then repeats.

Any ideas on troubleshooting? I'm hoping that it's an issue with a fuse, but not sure how to test. In the meantime, by bike is stranded 25 miles from the BMW shop with the threat of snow looming...I really want to put the bike to bed healthy and with fresh oil!

Thanks!

 

[dieselyoda]

Fuses, pull them, check them, push them in again, then pull them to see if they are seated.

In my career, I've had $500K machines go down because somebody looked at the fuses and thought they were good and it turned out to be......a fuse.

 

[gsaddict]

Load test the battery - one of the internal straps between the cells may have cracked. A voltmeter will show 12v but the battery may not carry any load.
It can also fool battery tenders.
(this was common to a lot of early hexheads with the Exide batteries but I have seen it on other machines)

Next:

Check main leads to the battery (+ & -)
They should be tight and no corrosion under the contact surfaces

Next:

Check the other end of the - lead. It is grounded to the engine block directly under the battery box - there have been corrosion issues there

Report back

 

[bobbymacd]

Resolved!

Load test the battery - one of the internal straps between the cells may have cracked. A voltmeter will show 12v but the battery may not carry any load.
It can also fool battery tenders.
(this was common to a lot of early hexheads with the Exide batteries but I have seen it on other machines)

Next:

Check main leads to the battery (+ & -)
They should be tight and no corrosion under the contact surfaces

Next:

Check the other end of the - lead. It is grounded to the engine block directly under the battery box - there have been corrosion issues there

Report back

I took off the left fairing and pulled the battery half way out. Voltmeter read 13.2. Turned the key and the voltmeter went down to 12.2 BUT more importantly the lights went on and everything buzzed to life!

When I installed the new battery in September, I couldn't put a new nut and bolt on the black (+) terminal as the old bolt was somewhat rusted and fused to the o-ring lead at the end of the connection cable. In addition, the terminal on the battery was made of a very soft lead (rhymes with red). So I put the old bolt through that terminal, and it went through -- but then it got stuck at an angle that prevented me from slipping a nut on the other end. But it seemed to be very snug in that soft lead (and of course I was anxious to get this done and go for a ride) so I left it in place.

Lesson learned: don't be too lazy to chisel/pound out a corroded bolt from an o-ring lead at the end of a battery cable. That connection felt solid at the time but after six weeks it became just loose enough to momentarily disconnect. At least it happened in the garage and not on the road....

Thank you for your responses and ideas -- I will file them away for future reference when the next gremlin strikes!

 

[gsaddict]

I just love a simple inexpensive ending!!!

 

[happy wanderer]

I recall reading Paul Glaves' advice about checking the last thing you worked on. Retrace steps, double check the work.

This one's a Class A example of why we should do that!

 

[bobbymacd]

Yup. I too love a simple and cheap solution, especially when it serves as a gentle reminder that the wrong attitude -- as I had when I first changed that battery -- wlll always produce a bad result.



?Peace of mind produces right values, right values produce right thoughts. Right thoughts produce right actions and right actions produce work which will be a material reflection for others to see of the serenity at the center of it all.?


― Robert M. Pirsig, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values